Experiment
by CatalystOfTheSoul
Summary: A community fiction written by every DP author on this site that has an interest to participate. Which -so far- is around 40 of you guys. Anyone else can still do so. A list of rules and how to use DocX included. I'm posting the chapters in it too.
1. Rules

Summary: I have no idea what this is going to be about yet. As you are the ones writing it. I'm simply the one who came up with the idea. XD

Experiment! A community phandom story is in the works. I want every DP author to participate. Although I am aware of that impossibility, I would like it if you could help to write this with everyone else I can dig up within the fandom to do this. It will be a story started by me, and every author I send it to will have the opportunity to add-on. My beginning will last no more than one page on Word. Perhaps less.

This is an experiment to find out if we --as a whole, romance, angst, humor, and fluff-- writers can make one story flow. As a lot of authors like to lean in on one specific genre, do not be afraid to let the scene change and lean into your 'area' of writing to show your own flavor in the work. I'd like to see you work your strong point in a community piece. I just ask that you make it flow with what was last written. I will not change what you send me, nor will anyone else.

But, if I see dreadful spelling errors, I will PM you concerning them and if you give me permission, I will put in the correct spelling. XD Accidental slips of the hand do happen on a keyboard. (Same goes for capitalization, grammar, ect. Only with authors permission.)

PM me if you would like to participate. No, better yet, send a review. That way I can reply, FF allows only 30 PM's a day, and I need those for helping to tell everyone they have a chance to do this.

Rules of play:

I will not beta what you have, if you wish to have it beta read, then have someone else do so before sending it back to me. Make absolutely sure your beta DOES NOT beta everyone else's work as well as your own. Do not touch what is already written.

One page on word can be added, no more, but less is fine. If you happen to type a sentence or a paragraph, that is no problem. But make sure it is no longer then a page on word. If you happen to add more than a page, I will delete that portion. No matter how much I may like it. (One page on Word is roughly 400-600 words, with double spaced paragraph breaks.)

Send me only your page add-on, not the entire story thread and your add-on. This is a precautionary measure to make sure no-one messes with another authors' written work. Even if it looks sloppy. They had a chance to beta-read before sending it to me. Do not tamper with what has been written already.

If another person you know would like to participate, have them send me a PM or review and I will add them to the list in order to get the so-far done copy.

Do not finish the story. Do not put a pretty bow at the end unless if I tell you you are the one to do that as the last writer to work on the piece. You may request to finish the work as the last person to work on it, if you are the first to request this, then you have it. You still can only add a page. If your tie-up is more than a page, I will delete and have someone else finish the 'story'.

Do not delete your paragraph breaks because you don't have enough room. If I get a wall of text as a reply, I will separate it, and delete what bleeds into the next page. My limit is five sentences, six if you're lucky, four-three if the sentences are very long. I don't mean to be pushy, I just want the reader to enjoy it as well.

There is a time limit after I send you the 'so-far written' copy. You will have one week to write your portion, no more, before I send to the next author. This goes for whoever specifically requests to finish it as well. In that case, I'm sure I can find another willing to finish.

If you get mad at another author for 'messing up' what you wrote before that, and they have not tampered with your section of writing, I will not yell at them, or tell you who wrote before you did. This is a community piece, and I will not tolerate whining because it didn't go the way you wanted it to. I highly doubt this will go the way anyone plans it to, as long as we can make it flow.

I ask that you do not disrupt the flow of writing. The experiment is all about seeing if it can pass as good work. If the last author left off on with the character on a street corner, don't take it up again at that characters room, listening to music or something.

I understand some of you may be wondering if you can add your OC's to the group, or make it AU. I ask that you don't and please keep to cannon. In another experiment, I may choose otherwise. But as the first one, please no. That goes the same for slash, lemon, and yaoi.

It can take place before or after PP, but if it has been chosen that it is before PP when you take up the fic, do not change it to after PP or vise versa.

If you want to send in a disclaimer, please do, and whichever makes me laugh the most will be posted.

Rating, I ask that you keep it around 'K+', and if you want it to be at 'T' for minor language, send it to me and I'll see if it's acceptable. Just remember this is a community piece, and the general community rating is 'K+'.

I am going to get your add-on via DocX. If you have a problem with that for whatever reason, let me know and I will send you an early PM message of the story (in sections if I have to) so instead of DocX you get a PM, and send a PM in reply.

Last one. If you don't follow what is said above, you won't participate. I'm sorry to be pushy, but this is how it is.

-- DP --

With that, I ask that you have fun with this experiment.

Thank you,

~Catalyst

Oh um, p.s. I have no clue how to use DocX just yet, I was going to do it all through email. So would you so skilled and learned people please tell me? XD, Thank you so much for participating! I will add a list of authors at the end of the 'story' of every one that contributed in anyway to this fiction.


	2. How to use DocX

Thanks to Cordria, I now know how to use DocX, so this is for all of you as well as me. Yes, I got her permission for it. Please, accept my 'connection' thing I sent to you if you've asked to participate:

Brief overview of DocX:

You will need to create connections before you can send documents. To create  
a connection:

1. On the main account screen (click 'login') find the 'DocX' tab.

2. Click the 'connections' link.

3. Change the dropbox from 'userid' to 'penname'

4. Type in the penname of the person you would like to send DocX file to or  
receive DocX files from.

5. Click 'create connection'.

6. The other person will have to accept the connection before you can send  
them a file.

To send a file:

1. Create a file on your desktop just like you would upload a normal story.

2. On the main account screen (click 'login') find the 'Publish' tab.

3. Click the 'upload/manage' link.

4. Upload a new document the same as you would a normal story, only making  
sure the 'DocX' radio button is selected before you click 'submit'.

5. Click on the 'DocX' tab.

6. Click the 'Outbox' link.

7. Chose a recipient (will only show connections that have been made and  
confirmed by both parties) as well as the file you uploaded. Type in a small  
comment and click 'send'. The recipient will receive an email telling them  
they have received a document.

To view a document you receive:

1. On the main account screen (click 'login') find the 'DocX' tab.

2. Click the 'inbox' link.

3. Find the file you wish to view and click over on the far right-hand side  
of the screen. The icon shows an unopened envelope.

4. The file will open in a new window. To easily view and edit the text,  
highlight the words, copy, and then paste it into text editing software  
(Word). Once you have added/edited your work, you can upload the new file.  
DocX files will retain formatting such as bolding, italics, and underlining,  
as well as the double-space formatting that comes when you copy and paste the  
file from the internet into a Word document.

-- DP --

Again, thank you Cori.

~Catalyst


	3. Chapter 1

**This is the 'first chapter' worked on by me and *insert peName here*. To anyone wondering, you can still ask to join the community fiction.**

**And there sounds to be some confusion on how to send your story portion to me, and how I send it to you, I ask that you take a look at chapter two. We're using DocX, and chapter two tells you how to do that if you don't know. XD, Thanks to everyone who signed on to participate!  
**

**Disclaimer (by BluFox15):I do not own Danny Phantom. If I did, then it wouldn't have ended so quickly. If I did, then it would be an anime. If I did, then it would probably be a yaoi (even though it's not my main ship) just to keep it interesting. If I did, then Danny's transformation would be a lot more interesting than just a couple of rings. But it is none of those things, so I don't. And as a replacement, I weep bitterly and curse Butch Hartman everyday.**

* * *

Jazz stepped outside, feeling the cool, autumn breeze dance around her. Smiling in the relative peacefulness of the moment, she walked in the general direction of the parking lot.

A perfect day like this only came once in a lifetime, after all. She might as well relish the moment.

* * *

Unnoticed by most of the citizens of Amity Park, a battle raged on in the vast sky. A ghost in a mechanical suit fought with the most well known ghost in the town, Danny Phantom.

"Can't we just continue tomorrow?" Danny yelled before throwing a punch. The day was so perfect before Skulker came along and practically halfanapped him from the computer game he was playing with Tucker. If Skulker had waited just a few more seconds, he would have won.

"No." Skulker said and fired one of his numerous built-in weapons.

"Darn it. Just leave me alone." Danny made an ectosword to slice Skulker's suit in half. If the mechanical suit couldn't work, Skulker couldn't fight. He could end the battle and continue to enjoy the perfect day.

The halfa dodged Skulker's attack. He raised his green sword. Danny brought it down.

A hand shot out of a portal that appeared out of nowhere and pulled him into the darkness. Just before blacking out, he thought he heard someone yell his name.

* * *

"Can't we just continue tomorrow?"

Was that, Danny?

Jazz looked up to the sky.

"No."

She couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her little brother. Even on such a perfect day as this, he still had to fight ghosts.

"Darn it. Just leave me alone."

The redhead opened her car door. Danny would need a thermos. It should be here somewhere… there!

Jazz took the Fenton Thermos and waited. The fight would be over soon. She could tell what Danny planned to do. Once he was done, she would pass the thermos to him, instead of yelling to him know and disrupting his attention.

Her brother dodged Skulker's attack, raised his green sword …

Suddenly, a portal appeared. Her brother was in the middle of bringing his sword down when he was pulled into the portal. She couldn't move. Her brain froze as she watched the hand drag Danny away from the perfect sky. Before he was completely swallowed up by the black swirls, her mouth moved.

"Danny!"

Then, her only brother disappeared in front of her eyes.

* * *

**Alright, there you have it. I will not tell you the name of who wrote this...unless I get permission to do so. I have perhaps half a page of what's written next, but I decided to send it out and build on it before it's posted.**

**Oh, and the post for finishing the story is still open for those who want it! I also need more disclaimer if you feel so inspired to send me one...**

**One last thing, I've sent all participators my wish for a connection on DocX, it would be nice if you could connect up so I don't need to wait until your turn to write and then fret because I don't have you connected and you're next to send to on my list.  
**

**~Catalyst**


	4. Chapter 2

**There appears to be slight confusion as to how one will send me the story--as I said, we're using DocX. All information you need concerning that is in the first and second chapter.**

**One more thing, if this fic is nearing a close because I have less and less authors, I will inform you that the fiction is nearing its end and put how many people are left to give you a rough estimation of when the climax must take place and sich.  
**

**Anywho, I LOVE what you guys are doing with this, and :insert penName of amazing author here: did a wonderful cliffy at the bottom. The others, :lists the amazing authors: seemed to have done well on it too. Have fun, and if you still want to participate, simply ask and your wish shall be granted!**

**Disclaimer: (by my good friend Carla) I own Danny Phantom, I own those little umbrellas that you put in drinks, I own certain portions of Disney Land and all of Universal Studios, I own Alaskan oil and certain portions of Arizona. I am also a notorious liar.  
**

* * *

Danny struggled to consciousness, neon-green eyes blinking blearily as they opened to too-bright light. Out of the corner of his eyes he had the distinct impression of a multitude of beings, but the piercing, burning light kept him from making out anything specific.

He gradually became aware of a drain on his energy and a heaviness in his limbs, making him look down at his body. His eyes widened at the sight of chains running from cuffs on his ankles and wrists to the floor, the metal shimmering faintly. He turned his head and heard the soft, musical clink of metal as well, making him realize that he was collared by the same, a chain running from the back of the ring around his throat to the pedestal he was standing upon.

_What's going on? Where am I? Last thing I remember is fighting Skulker, _he thought. Normally, his thoughts would have been racing and he would have been trying to find a way out of his bonds, but a lethargy had settled upon him, draining him of his motivation and strength, making escape an idle fantasy.

"Danny Phantom," came a solemn voice that sent unpleasant shivers up his spine. There was foreboding in its tone that made Danny's stomach sink towards his heels.

"Who are you? What's going on?" Danny demanded, trying to not sound as terrified as he actually was, pushing beyond the curious draining exhaustion he was experiencing.

He squinted in the bright light…

Danny was met with the surprising sight of a giant eye. It blinked. The boy recoiled in shock and astonishment with a sharp release of a gasp. He would have fallen right off the pillar he was chained down to, but his shackles kept him nicely in place.

Looking out farther, Danny saw that he was in the center of a large room. The way the lighting was made the ghost boy believe he was somewhere in the Ghost Zone. It always had that eerie glow of something supernatural. The many staring bodies made mostly out of eyes that surrounded him could have given that fact away too.

"You are at the Observant High Council," the main eye told Danny. The ghost had said this either because he had seen the confusion and fear on the boy's face, or it was just customary in these kinds of situations.

"Observant High Council?" Danny asked. He had never heard of it.

"Correct," the leader of the Observants said rather tersely. He suddenly turned to the rest of the council with a snap of his crimson colored cape and called out to them, "You have seen the footage. This young ghost has endangered many lives. What say you?"

"Guilty!" the entire room said in union.

"Always so quick to judge," a familiar, calm voice said suddenly from Danny's side. The boy was grateful to have all the eyes shift from him to the new ghost who confidently floated there for all to see. His red eyes took in the Observants almost with contempt. But he still kept up the mystery with a playful smile on his child-like face.

"Clockwork!" Danny breathed in wonder. What was he doing here? What was going on? The poor and weakened boy was too drained of energy to try and figure this new mystery out.

"You were not summoned to the Council," the leader of the Observants told Clockwork. "Why have you come?"

"You were the ones who put the ghost boy in my care," Clockwork explained. "Or did you overlook this minor detail?"

Indignantly, the leader of the Observant High Council answered, "We did NOT overlook this fact. But we DID notice that you are biased on behalf of your charge. You have lost your objectivity. Further, you are not beyond changing history to suit yourself, to make sure that a crime your charge committed never happened. THAT is why you were not invited."

Smiling enigmatically, Clockwork explained, "Be that as it may, he is still my charge, and the problem you asked me to take care of has been fixed. Danny had a second chance, and he made the right choice."

"I object!" cried a voice from an unexpected direction. Danny groggily looked up to find the voice. He gasped when he saw who spoke. Vlad was there, in his ghost form, also in manacles binding his wrists and ankles, but not as drained as Danny, or if he was, he had more practice hiding this type of weakness.

The Observants in the prosecution nodded to the captive ghost. "Vlad Plasmius, a second defendant for HIS crimes against humanity, has been granted permission to voice his objection."

"Since that time, his choices may have been mostly correct, and in fairness, the endangerment of people has rarely been his fault." Danny listened suspiciously. Since when was Vlad interested in fairness? That was, of course, unless Vlad had an underlying motive. Danny barely had the strength to sigh, but he was sure that he and the Council would learn of this motive soon enough.

"Daniel, the young and inexperienced half-ghost, has been granted a chance to change where HE has gone wrong, to fix his wrongs, to correct the error of his ways.

"I acknowledge that many of my crimes have been unanswered, but I have not been given an opportunity to relive the moment that started me in the wrong direction. I've been accused of grand larceny and of abusing my powers for self-gain. I am guilty as charged. But where was MY reprieve? Where was MY chance to prove that I could have done better, if given a second chance?"

Murmurings could be heard all over the chamber. Why HAD Clockwork favored young Danny and ignored Vlad?

Clockwork frowned as he shifted his age. "I see what is going on here. Neither of the accused is actually on trial here, though they will suffer the consequences of the outcome of this hearing. _I_ am the one on trial, as are my choices." Though few would admit it openly, that was exactly the intention of the Council. Clockwork said that he could see all of the twists and turns life could take, but the injustice perceived by Vlad, who accused Danny of similar misdeeds upon his own incarceration, was seen by many in the chamber.

The Observants stared silently for a long moment. "Do you have anything more to say?" the leader of the Observants asked.

"I do," Clockwork said with a shrug. "I suggest a fix to the problem: give Vlad Plasmius a second chance as well."

"Nonsense!" the Observants called out. Dark murmuring filled the room. "We cannot allow you to change the time stream!"

Clockwork held up a hand and silence to fall over the room. "Then how do you propose to fix this inequality?"

The silence continued. Finally the leader spoke up. "Your duty is to watch the time stream, Clockwork. We cannot expect you to take the time to fix this. Such a suggestion is unacceptable."

"A proxy, then?" Clockwork asked quietly. "Someone to go in my place?"

The leader of the Observants snorted. "Where would you find someone to do such a thing? Someone who understands all of the issues at stake?"

The time-ghost's red eyes flickered towards Danny. "I do believe there is one strapped to a table in this very room."

"You can't be serious," the Observant said dubiously. "The young half-ghost?"

Clockwork simply nodded and folded his arms, shifting his form to a young and innocent child.

After several minutes of quiet murmuring, the Observants finally nodded. "Fine. Daniel Phantom will be sent back in time in an attempt to give Vlad Plasmius a second chance. Should he fail and Vlad Plasmuis chooses to continue breaking the law, we will end up back here."

Clockwork waited a moment to see if the Observants were finished speaking, then floated up to Danny. With a gesture, the cuffs around the young halfa's arms and legs vanished. As the time-ghost placed an amulet around Danny's neck, Clockwork gave him a small, secretive smile. "Enjoy being friends with a younger Vlad, Danny," he whispered.

"I get no say in this?" Danny muttered darkly, crossing his arms.

"Apparently not," Clockwork chuckled.

Blue energy swirled around Danny and, when it cleared, sitting in front of him was Vlad Masters… age twenty. He had gone back in time to the day after Vlad's accident.

* * *

**Thanks to everyone for their cooperation, without you, this would not be possible.**

**~Catalyst  
**

**p.s. I'm desperate for disclaimers...**


	5. Chapter 3

**This is a short one! Sorry for the wait...heh, looks like some people were busy. *rolls eyes* I still would like your disclaimers.**

**Disclaimer: (by pearl84) I ****do not own Danny Phantom… But I do own a little, just-as-crazy version of Vlad! He is my muse, and he says that after he buys the Green Bay Packers, he is going to buy the 'Danny Phantom' show from Mr. Hartman! And then, he'll have the show go how HE wants it to! Hmm…Is that an 'eww' or a 'yikes'?**

* * *

_Twenty years in the past…_

A twenty-year-old Vlad Masters stared with large eyes at where his missing human hand _should_ be. His right limb had been there one moment, and the next, it had vanished before his eyes. It only took the white-haired young man a few seconds to react…. "AHHH!" he screamed at the top of his lungs, falling off the hospital bed in his panic.

Immediately, the head nurse and two assistant nurses ran in. "Mr. Masters!" the head one exclaimed upon finding the boy in heap on the floor. "Are you alright?! What's wrong?!"

"My arm! My arm is gone!" he shouted, completely freaked.

The head nurse quickly approached him, while the other two lingered behind, feeling uneasy with the young man's ludicrous claim. The kid was weird enough with his white hair and glowing acne. So, silently, they watched their coworker kneel beside the boy, and gently say, "What are you talking about, Vlad? Your _arms_ are fine, see?"

Vlad moved his scared gaze away from the nurse and back to his arms, only to find they were both there. For a moment, he touched the one that had been missing, before looking back at the nurse, and murmuring, "B-But it had not been there… I _saw_ it _vanish_."

She smiled at him, trying to mask the fact that she found his claim just as absurd as the other two nurses had. "Perhaps you were dreaming. I think we both know that limbs don't just vanish… well, unless they were a _ghost's_. But ghosts don't exist; and if they did, you certainly are not one. Come, get back in bed," she said kindly, offering a hand.

Vlad silently accepted the nurse's hand, and climbed back on the bed as she said, "The doctor will be here to see you around two. Maybe he'll finally know what is causing your… condition." But seeing the sad look now on the young man's face, she gave him a sympathetic smile, and added. "If you need anything let me know, okay?"

Vlad just nodded, before looking away towards the window. With the soft click of the door, the twenty-year-old sighed; and crestfallen, whispered, "This is so unfair…"

"Not as unfair as this," an annoyed voice suddenly said.

Vlad's blue eyes darted towards the white-haired, glowing entity now in his room, and a horrified look slowly grew on his face. Immediately, the twenty-year-old screamed again.

Danny gasped as he heard people running towards his 'arch-enemy's' hospital room. And knowing he couldn't get caught here, but also that he needed to stay with Vlad if he was going to do what he was sent here for, he quickly did the first thing that came to mind.

He grabbed the screaming Vlad around the waist, turned them both intangible, and flew them out of the hospital. The teen knew he couldn't tell Vlad that he was from the future, but that did not mean they still didn't have a lot to talk about…

* * *

**It has come to my attention that no one really cares if their penName is put out here, so with that in mind I'll list all the participants that have gone so far for ya (in order):**

**First chapter;**

**CatalystOfTheSoul (me! For two sentences!)**

**Enray**

**Second Chapter;**

**Ryuuko1**

**PixieGirl13**

**Miriam1**

**Cordria**

**Third chapter;**

**pearl84**

**XD This explains all the Vladdy goodness, doesn't it?**

**Thanks for participating! And if you want to participate, I can still put you in! Oh yeah--it has also come to my attention that some of you would like to go more than once. That IS allowed, and all you have to do is ask. That way I can put you once near the beginning, and maybe once near the end or middle of he fic, ok?  
**

**~Catalyst**

**p.s. Disclaimer? Please?  
**


	6. Chapter 4

**Authors of chapter:**

**truephan**

**Artgirl4**

**Disclaimer: (by truephan)I do not own Danny Phantom. If I did, I would make him and his friends a little older (say, 16) and the title of the show would be "Danny Phantom: Alternate Universes". The stories would deal with the characters' past, present or future, or deal with zany or any other AU themes. However, the characters' personalities would be the same and they would be totally aware that they are both part and separate of what was happening around them, even the AU episodes. Then, since this show would be a definite hit, I would make a deal with The Cartoon Network folks instead of Nick's to promote it. After all, it seems to me that the CN execs are WAY smarter than the Nick ones!**

* * *

As the intangible Danny flew onward, he instantly regretted his decision. The twenty-year-old Vlad, who was still secure in teen's arms, was now in a panic and was trying to pry himself from this thing that had whisked him away from the hospital. And Danny was having an increasingly hard time controlling him.

The teenager frantically scanned downward and saw a small building just ahead. It would have to do. He hurriedly phased through the roof just as he lost his grip on the struggling Vlad. The boy gasped as the twenty-year-old fell. And after watching the next scene unfold, Danny cringed. He now had no doubt that taking Vlad from the hospital was a very bad idea. Not only had Vlad ended up in a uncomplimentary sprawl on the floor below, dressed only in his hospital gown, but he was also now surrounded by a lot of other stunned---and oddly dressed--young people. Danny turned invisible and soared downward.

Just as Danny reached Vlad, the twenty-year-old stirred, and groaned, "Bogus!"

The crowd then laughed nervously at Vlad, relieved that he seemed to be OK, but still uncertain on what to do with this weird-o-rama kid who had fallen out of nowhere.

Suddenly, a loud noise erupted, and the crowd and Danny gasped. Danny frowned in confusion when they then laughed again. Wondering why, he searched for the reason, and sighed at his answer. Just his luck that he had picked this place! A teen had just blown up the big bad guy on one of the many _Space Invaders _video games that lined the wall, adding more mayhem to the continuous sounds of the other games such as _Pac-Man_ and _Ms. Pac-Man_ in this now very obvious video arcade.

But Danny didn't want to waste any more time. He scooped the dazed Vlad up and turning him invisible and intangible, flew out of the arcade. He rolled his eyes at the crowd's delighted reactions, trying to ignore all the "Totally awesomes!", "Radicals!" "Tubulars!" "Gnarlys!" and "Grody to the maxs!" he heard as he continued upward.

With a now placid Vlad in tow, Danny headed to a nearby forest and landed. He released the young man and both of them rematerialized.

"Sorry, Vlad, my bad," Danny sheepishly said to the still dazed twenty-year-old.

Seeing the frightening entity once more, but not having fully recovered from his fall, Vlad anxiously blurted out, "Gag me with a spoon, dude! It's not bad, it's totally gross!"

If he wasn't so worried about this whole Observants' thing, Danny would have laughed at the situation. Instead, he said, "Look, I'm sorry about taking you from the hospital, but…"

But Vlad, his ecto-acne now scarlet from his emotions, forcefully interrupted him, "Dude! Are you some kind of airhead? Can't you see that I'm having a cow here? Who or what are you? And, uh, I haven't seen any designer neon spandex outfits like that before." He gasped at his next thought before continuing, "Are you some kind of weird Freddie Krueger wannabe? Or maybe something that had escaped from that barf-me-out portal Jack made?"

"Well, you're partially right. Let's just say…" Danny began, nervously scratching the back of his neck. But after seeing Vlad's eyes widen, the teen stopped and sighed.

Darn it! This was going to take _much_ longer than he had thought.

"Wait, you really are from that majorly lame hunk of junk?! Seriously?! That's totally bogus!" Vlad shouted.

"Could you calm down? Jeez, If I had realized that I'd really have to go the sixties, I may have reconsidered…or is this the fifty's?"

"Wait! If you're one of those creepy ghost dudes, that doesn't mean-?!" Vlad gasped, then got on his knees, hands clasped out in front of him.

"Please don't toast me! Just because I have these bummer pimples on my face doesn't mean I deserve to fly like you! Come on, have a heart! I mean, one that doesn't beat, sure, but at least have one!"

"Vlad."

"I didn't actually mean that comment 'bout the spandex! Really! Your threads are totally awesome to the max! Groovy, really!"

"Vlad."

"Plus I haven't even had my first whammer! I need a chick before I go down man! Like there's this totally gorgeous red-haired bombshell at my college and—"

"VLAD!" The man cowered. Danny had just about had it. Plus, he was kinda sure who exactly the "bombshell" was, and it was creeping him out.

"RELAX! I'M NOT GOING TO KILL YOU!...you haven't had your first whammer-I mean kiss! yet?" Danny asked with surprised tone. Vlad looked at him with wide eyes and nodded frantically.

_"Wow. He was really sure about my Mom…gross!!!"_

"Wait, if you aren't gonna make me kick the bucket, then what are you doing chilling around here man? And how do you know who I am?"

Danny gave a deer-caught-in-the-headlights look, making Vlad raise an eyebrow. "And hey, how old are you anyway?"

"Ummmmm…."

* * *

**Hello! Catalyst here, accepting disclaimers and readying up for the holiday season, as I am sure most of you are. If not for the holidays, at least a long winter. *exasperated* Snow + rain + snow again = idiots on ice. And yet we still didn't get any school delays because they made the standard higher for living here and now it has to really _snow _in order to get any form of reprieve from the educational system. ...A real snowstorm has happened once within my ten years of living in this state, our record for snow on the valley floor is thirteen inches.**

**Normal winter level--two tops. About one inch as of current. I live in a very dry area.**

**Anyway, just thought I'd point out something different. Our garbage guys gave us a card saying 'Happy Holidays', did it for every house. The weird thing was they were actually _hand signed_. Do you have any idea how many houses they go to every day? That's hundreds of cards! XD I gave them one back, left on top of the trash can today. It was very colorful so I hope they noticed. **

***grin* Just thought I'd mention that and lift you up with a tiny smile! Go ahead, smile, I know you want to.**

**The Experiment will be updated again around New Years Eve, as I am going to be wiped off the face of the planet from tomorrow until next Sunday.**

**~Catalyst**

**p.s. I will litterally be wiped off the planet from today to next Sunday. So until then, Happy holidays!  
**


	7. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone, guess whose turn is it to write a chapter for this fic?**

Ya give up?

Fine… you guys suck at guessing anyway.

I'm Invader Johnny and oh boy I'm hoping to do a decent job on this one page chapter.

Now then first of all, I got to tell ya all the legal crap… is there really a reason for that anyways? DP is not my property if it was then Ember would have made many more appearances and there would have been DP crossover with Invader Zim! And of course Phantom Planet would NOT have happened! Who here felt sorry for Vlad?

* * *

Right before Danny could answer his arch-enemy, an ectoblast came out of nowhere hitting the white haired teen right on the face.

Vlad at seeing this could only think of one thing to do.

Scream.

His fear was short-lived since he was punched from the back.

Vlad was knocked out.

Danny quickly recovered from the unexpected attack or as soon as he could, considering his head was stuck in a tree.

"Oh this day keep getting better and better." The ghost boy said sarcastically.

Before he could turn intangible, he felt someone or something grabbing him by his hands, pulling him out of the three.

"You know you could help a little" a feminine voice snapped.

"Who are you?" Danny couldn't help but ask.

"A girl who would rather be somewhere else!"

The fourteen year old finally got out of the damn tree and when he did, he couldn't believe his eyes.

"…EMBER!"

It was indeed the undead rocker in front of him, scowling at the injustice of the situation.

"What are you doing here?"

Ember snorted "At the moment? ...Helping you"

"Ok this is getting sooo weird… Danny commented "Why?"

"OWW!"

Ember was grabbing her neck at the pain she felt "Damn Observants!"

The pain increased.

"What's wrong with you?!" Danny couldn't help but ask in concern.

Ember, who was now in the floor only managed to point at her neck, Danny gasped at what she was wearing.

A shock collar.

When the hero was about to open his mouth, he was stopped by Ember.

"To keep me in control..." She answered his unasked question "They felt you were going to fail so they wanted someone to help you out on whatever it is your doing"

"The Observants are watching?"

The rock diva nodded.

Danny had never felt so angry towards the one eyed ghosts; they were certainly something to be dealt with, now he knows by Clockwork dislike them so much.

But a more important matter was at hand.

Danny roughly grabbed Ember by her shoulders and stare right into her eyes "Why  
are you here?"

She rolled her eyes "I told you Phantom… to help you!"

"Against your will, I take it?"

"Duh"

"Why you?"

"Because the Observants wanted someone to keep an eye on you… "

Danny snickered at the unintended pun.

"They wanted someone who would NOT be 100 percent on your side in the events you decide to revel or something, as you can see those one eyed guys are very paranoid."

"That and because they are getting back at me for calling them one eyed freaks with no afterlives!!" Ember thought bitterly.

Danny nodded "So why did you attack me and Vlad?

"Because you can't tell him squat! She snarled "It would be bad in the long run, that's what Clockwork said anyway"

He was curious now "How bad?"

"You not being born bad."

* * *

**DUM DUM DUM! How ya like that cliff-hanger?!**

Evil enough for you all?

Well that's all from me.

Invader Johnny Signing Off.

**(Note from Catalyst;**

**Okay, for the writers, you do not have to do what Invader Johnny did, as in write the entire chapter. I understand that with a page limit a chapter that size could be annoyingly small. I am sending what the last author wrote, hoping that you will continue it _in the same chapter_ (unless, of course, you discover a particularly evil cliffhanger, then by all means stop it right there and tell me that's where you want the chapter to end. Otherwise, I will be seperating out chapters). Remeber, this experiment centers around flow, and what better way is there to test that than trying to keep it within the same chappie?**

**p.s. To anyone still wanting to join in the crazyness, there will always be room for you! Also, disclaimers anyone?)  
**


	8. Chapter 6

**Heh, hi everyone! *gets rocks thrown at her* Hey! I've been busy! And I did send...to two others...without reply...but still! I'm updating! ^^ Feel free to kick me whenever though, and make me update what I haven't shown you. This chapter ends kind of abruptly, which was why I was holding it back from you guys. *shrug* Oh well, you all deserve an update from lazy little me.**

**....First part by DPcrazy and the last part is by Nylah. Enjoy!  
**

**Disclaimer (by DPcrazy):  
**

**_| |  
|Dictionary|  
| of |  
|Fanfiction|_**

|_|

Fanfiction (n.): a work of literature in which the original storyline is NOT  
owned by the fanfiction author.

OR...

Disclaimer (n): A statement of not owning a published work.

Example: I do NOT own Danny Phantom, nor will I EVER own it, so leave me  
alone freakin' lawyer people! YOU CAN'T SUE ME! [And please, feel free to send me all of your silly disclaimers, I like to use them!]

* * *

For a moment, Danny's brain slowed down like a computer trying to process too much information. A second later, it whirred back to life again. Ember didn't seem to care about his momentary lapse of silence, for she continued.

"Although, I can't say there'd be a lot of us who'd miss you," she commented absently.

Danny shook himself completely awake. "Gee, thanks." He scowled. "Anything else I should know? Or would you like to continue throwing hits to my self-esteem?"

"No need to get all snappy. Look, all they said was to make sure you kept quiet, not to interfere with your parents or their work, and not to help the guy with his powers."

Danny sighed. "Then what on Earth do they _want_ me to do?" Then, as an afterthought, he added, "Besides getting along and stopping him from breaking the law."

The rocker shrugged. "Beats me. But if I were you, I'd get that guy somewhere secluded before he wakes up."

"For someone who was sent here to help me, you really aren't that much help," the teen said dryly.

"Whatever," she droned.

Danny shot her a sharp look before picking up the unconscious man and darting off through the trees. Behind him, Ember rolled her eyes.

"Two hormonally imbalanced halfas. Just great. If you can hear me, pinheads, this counts as cruel and unusual punishment." She was answered to with a slight spark. She growled. "Yep, they can hear me."

* * *

Danny boredly tossed a ball of ecto-energy between his hands. A half-hour had passed and Vlad still hadn't woken up. If it weren't for the fact Danny could see the man breathing, he would have assumed Ember 'accidentally' killed him.

Speaking of Ember, she was leaning in the corner, running her fingers over the strings of her guitar. They'd drift over the chords without making a sound. At least it kept her from bugging him.

Danny's "game" was abruptly interrupted when Vlad's eyelids started to peel back, revealing slightly glowing blue irises. It took all of a milli-second for him to recognize Danny's face and scream. He jolted upright, then noticing Ember in the corner and letting out another shriek. He scooted back slowly, all the while stuttering, "Th-There's two of you!"

"Hallelujah, the man's got eyes," Ember said, "Progress, after all."

Vlad's back hit the wall, but he kept moving his legs as if he wanted to push himself though the wall. Danny glared at Ember, and was about to remark that whatever she was doing here, helping him wasn't it, when Vlad managed to actually push himself through the wall. His surprised yelp was cut short when his intangible body disappeared.

"Oh for crying out loud," Ember said.

She dove through the wall and Danny followed her quickly, not trusting her at all with the still penniless multi-billionaire-evil-half-ghost to be. They were at the top floor of abandoned warehouse somewhere on the outskirts of town, the only place Danny could find at such a short notice where they wouldn't be disturbed for a while until he figured out what to do next. When he emerged from the wall, he saw Vlad, now standing up with his back against the opposing wall, staring wide eyed at a smirking Ember floating in front of him only inches off the floor, her arms crossed.

"Do you know," she asked him, ignoring Danny, "Just how annoying you're going to be? And to think I could put a stop to that right... Ouch, stop that, I was only expressing my thoughts, I can do that, right? I haven't done anything!"

The sparks that had come off the collar, clearly shocking her only mildly, stopped. She backed away from Vlad and retreated into a corner of the empty room, sulking. Danny rolled his eyes and then slowly put himself to the ground and walked over to Vlad, as not to alarm him more. He stopped about three feet away, when he saw Vlad place his hands against the wall, seemingly readying himself to make a run for it.

"Vlad, listen," he said, trying to placate the man, "I know you're a little freaked out now, but trust me, you'll get used to it. You just have to learn..."

Vlad disappeared. Danny blinked.

"Oh, great, where did he go now," he muttered, looking around.

A scream coming from way below gave him the answer. And the sudden increase of the blue mist escaping his mouth – which had been there since Ember had appeared – told him something else. There was another ghost around. He was about to go after Vlad and find out what had him spooked now, when Ember caught his arm.

"Be careful, dipstick," she said in an uncommonly serious tone of voice, "While I greatly enjoy the notion of you not being born, you can't let that happen. You have to keep Vlad away from your father."

"Huh?" Danny said, "Don't you mean my mother?"

Ember shook her head. "Jack Fenton can't marry your mother if he's dead," she said, "And I think Vlad just found out he has a ghost form."

She pointed at the window and Danny rushed to look outside. In the alley next to the warehouse floated one very young and unstable looking Vlad Plasmius. He no longer screamed, but was studying his black gloved hands. Then he looked up, straight into Danny's face, and in a startled movement turned himself upside down.

* * *

**Now remember to review and perhaps kick me for my lateness! XD And maybe send a disclaimer too...**

**~Catalyst**


	9. Chapter 7

**Sorry for the lateness. The stress. O.O You have no idea. My exams are in a few days. Crap.**

**Disclaimer:** **I own Danny Phantom. Until the police arrive and**** get Butch Hartman out of my closet, in which case I don't own Danny**** Phantom...and I don't own the closet either. -Artgirl4**

* * *

"Crap!" Danny yelled in frustration. "I can't do anything right today!" He flew over and landed beside Vlad, who was now just a little freaked out by him. Ember was right behind him with a bored smirk on her face.

Danny was a little surprised when Vlad said, "So..... I'm dead." he paused and then screamed at the top of his lungs," WHY AM I DEAD YOU FREAKY GLOWING KID?!"

He went to go punch Danny when a realized his palms were glowing pink. He stared and stared. And after a few moments he said, "The ectoplasm... In the portal...... Oh, no..... But I was only hit in the face! It couldn't have been enough to kill me.... Oh my God, Maddie......Is she dead too?" He trailed off.

"Vlad," Danny began softly, "the portal, it didn't kill you, it gave you ecto acne. That condition gave you ghost powers like umm......" he quickly made up a name for Ember to prevent time changes. "Felicity and I. My names Danny Phantom and that's Felicity McDipstick."

Ember cursed under her breath. Oh, she was going to murder Phantom later. Felicity! Urg! She despised that girly name. Of course leave it to a halfa to pick an idiotic fake name.

Meanwhile Vlad and Danny were discussing how to change back into your human form. He got it by the third time, but when he turned ghost again, he looked like he was about to puke.

"Urg, does it always feel like that when you change to a ghost?" Ember perked up at this. Changing _hurts _them? Maybe now the dipstick will quit with the superhero act.

"Err," Danny looked very uncomfortable talking about this with Ember listening. "Like you're dying again and again? Or that you've been frozen and then microwaved over and over?"

"The first." he said.

"Yeah, it goes away eventually, you get used to the balance beam." Danny incoherently whispered.

"What do you mean balance beam? Have you finally gone nuts dipstick?" Ember questioned hopefully.

"No, I, and now Vlad, walk a balance beam every day. There must always be someone walking it. If I fall to one side, dead or living, Vlad walks it alone, and if he falls…. We all die or disappear into inexistence. You don't choose to be a walker either, you're chosen, and no one cares if it's unfair, since life isn't fair. You have to lead a double life Vlad, like me. It's the worst life you can put upon someone, I'm sorry Vlad." Danny finished with a dulled sheen to his eyes.

Vlad and Ember were a bit shocked to say the least. All Vlad could think was, "How can I manage two lives? I can barely handle one!"

Ember got passed her shock and just thought, 'Wow, I guess that sucks.'

"Let's head into the warehouse, we can sleep there for the night. I think they stock sleeping bags." Danny sat up and flew through the right wall of the warehouse with Ember dragging Vlad along behind her.

* * *

Meanwhile Clockwork looked furious as he watched the events. The Observants noticed that and one of them said: "I see that you are angry because we won't allow you to directly meddle in the course of time. You must learn your place, Clockwork."

The Time Master tried to explain as calmly as possible: "I'm angry because your rushed actions just to try keep Danny under control are the reason why this mission will fail."

"You cannot trick us, Clockwork!" replied one Observant.

"Time lesson for dummies: For example, let's suppose Valerie Gray, from the Dan Phantom's future had somehow traveled back to the past and killed Danny, it wouldn't change a thing in her future. All it would do was to create ANOTHER timeline where Dan Phantom didn't exist, but her horrible future would remain because if it weren't for that, the death of Danny would create a paradox. Because if there were no Dark Danny, there wouldn't be a reason for her travel to the past. When I directly acted to help Danny, I erased the possibility of his ghost side going dark, and the fact I exist outside the time made me a constant for the time flow, not allowing the paradox."

"So what?" asked another Observant.

Clockwork sighed and continued: "Even with the shock collar, all you can do is to punish Ember AFTER she started doing something wrong. Before you could activate the collar she could, I don't know…send a letter to her father saying which stocks or shares from companies or do anything that would led her life to something totally different. Then, all the effort that Danny is having to change Vlad's past would follow the second timeline created by Ember instead of simply changing his current timeline. By the way, I had to put in the Ghost Boy one of my medallions, it was invisible and intangible so no one would notice. I had to do that because it was the only way to make sure that his actions in the past wouldn't create ANOTHER timeline, this is something you FORGOT to ponder. But Ember was sent through YOUR SECOND time portal with no power of mine and because of your actions my medallion in Danny was nullified, so in order to avoid a catastrophic paradox a new timeline was going to be created."

The Observants started to murmur between themselves.

"If any of that happens you can simply erase her actions. No harm would be done." Spoke the leader of the council.

Clockwork replied: "So are you saying I must clean your mess every time you desire, but when I try to make a better world you only complain. The rules say I must only be your puppet when **I** break a rule, for example harm innocent lives. I have no obligation neither by our law nor by my own moral to obey such request from you."

"YOU INSOLENT…" shouted the leader of the Observants.

"Are you surprised by my actions? You should know better than anyone my abilities to see the past, present and future. The Observants don't have a clear look of all timelines like I do. You brought this upon yourself. For the sake of the mission, Ember must leave, so my medallion can start working again and before Ember does any damage, because to erase her actions I would erase Danny's, which would make him re-do all his work; However, I know you still want a guarantee that Danny will also behave. How about I allow you to foresee any misbehavior of his and punish him with antecedence?" The Time Master explained. It bothered him to allow the leader of the council to have such control of Danny, but he knew that this was the only way to make him agree with his terms.

The Observant clenched his fists and accepted Clockwork's conditions. And Ember was sent back with a push of the button on Clockwork's Time Staff. Danny was now on his own.

* * *

**Again, late. Ugh. Sorry. Kill me later? ._. After my test. Chapter written first by Kirby77DP77 by Angelus-Alvus.**

**~Catalyst**


End file.
